General Discussion
Related: Editorials & Other Articles, Issue Forums, Alliance Forums, Region ForumsAmerica’s Serial Killers – How Many?
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John Douglas, a former Chief of the FBIs Elite Serial Crime Unit and author of
Mind Hunter says, A very conservative estimate is that there are between 35-50 active serial killers in the United States at any given time. Often, Douglas told me, they will, kill 2-3 victims and then have a cooling-off period between kills.
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But others who study serial killers (defined as someone who kills 3 or more people) think there are many more of these demented predators out there than the FBI admits to maybe as many as a hundred of them actively operating right now.
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The FBI knows death travels and five years ago it set up the Highway Serial Killings Initiative. The bureau reveals it has a matrix of more than 600 victims and potential suspects in excess of 275. Since the bodies were found off major highways top suspects are long-haul truckers who may pick up prey in one state and dump the body several states away.
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http://dianedimond.net/americas-serial-killers-how-many/
I knew some of this, but the info about Highway Homicides gave me the willies.
That said, you are far more likely to be hurt or killed by someone near and dear than be a victim of stranger danger.
roguevalley
(40,656 posts)and left.
treestar
(82,383 posts)Automatically suspect!
Lint Head
(15,064 posts)TheManInTheMac
(985 posts)My wife loves that show "Criminal Minds," and I always scoff at how there just aren't that many serial killers.
This is making me re-think taking up being a drifter for a second career.
TheWraith
(24,331 posts)Diane Dimond is simply trying to scare people shitless so they'll watch her on TV.
REP
(21,691 posts)And I hate to 'yabbut' on an anti-fear-mongering post, because I do hate the "be afraid of shit that you don't need to fear!" crap ...
but
Street sex workers, runaways, homeless people and others on the margins of society do have to worry slightly more about these type of things, in part because they are so marginalized and so few notice them or miss them when they're gone and also because their lives force them into more dangerous situations than others face.
I do agree with you. See my other post about my hometown; I have kind of a pet peeve about how the murders of marginalized people are handled (not by all but by far too many).
REP
(21,691 posts)It's a transit hub (highways, trains, planes, etc) and many of the killings go unreported in the media until a "good victim" (that is, someone who is not a sex worker, runaway or homeless person - this infuriates me) gets killed or a victim's family makes enough noise (and/or a victim manages to escape - see Bob Berdella). There are so many active there that the 'rarest' types are seen (and these have been caught): men who prey on other men; those who kill outside their own race and Black serial killers (serial killers are usually white; so much so that 'white male between 20-35' is part of the standard profile).
leveymg
(36,418 posts)How many? What do we do with them when they've gone past their shelf life?
jorno67
(1,986 posts)Actually I only saw the second half, I found it in already in progress. It was very well done.
That is the kind of guy that scares me, not the truck drivers, but rather the deacon at the church who's a boyscout leader going out every now and then to kill a neighbor.
msongs
(67,441 posts)Lint Head
(15,064 posts)Would make a great B movie title.